Sunday, February 2, 2020

Glimpses of January

A lovely welcome to all you lovely lovelies♥ January has flown by with lazy day, after lazy day filled with gardening, flowers, books, stitching of pretty bags and hexies and quilts; catching up with friends, long country drives with many a stop at a cafe along the way; and so many more pleasurable summery pastimes. January is I think, my favourite month of the year. Why?? I don't know really; it is the culmination of many things. Perhaps it's because here downunder it has always been  summer holidays. Summer holidays bursting with  relaxed, carefree pursuits where there are no obligatory timetables, except perhaps ensuring you make it to the movie cinema at the specified time. Oh, there is too of course, the small matter of my birthday which always comes aknocking on my door singing to me HAPPY BIRTHDAY♪♬ informing me that another number has been added to my years. Another year of skipping along my flower-lined path. Oh, and of course, January is when the garden is bursting with my favourite flowers of all flowers....the glorious hydrangeas. Yep, January is the month when those mop-headed beauties are in full bloom, making me smile at their blue loveliness. There have been many a happy snap of my carefree days of January. Care to take a peek??









So, January has ushered in February, the last month of summer, which is a wee bit sad. Wish oh wish I could grab summer and entice it to linger with me forever but that would be greedy of me. It will soon be the turn of all you lovelies way up there to enjoy the warmth and beauty of my favourite season. I suppose summer is needed to melt all those icicles which you have endured for a while. I must not be selfish. Summer will slowly fade away..........but not just yet. There is more warmth, sunshine and flowers to enjoy. Oh.....and hand quilting of my Floralicious Delight; even perhaps beginning to tart up my chaise lounge for which I have stitched the blue hexies, is to be enjoyed as well. Thank you for popping by and catching a 'few' glimpses of summer here at my little place. 'Tis Sunday here today and that of course means a little hand quilting love. Come to think of it, I just might spend this afternoon quilting. Yes indeedy, me thinks I will sit my gluteus maximus on any number of seats in the garden and whilst I happily stitch away, drink in all the summer blossoms. Thank you for the gift of your visit; each one of you lovelies always sprinkle joy to my day. Wishing you all a lovely, flowery kinda day♥

Until the next time.................



Linking up this week to Kathy's Slow Sunday Stitching.


64 comments:

  1. Such a lovely post, thank you for sharing all of the gorgeous photos with us.

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  2. I love your hydrangeas, but also glads, cosmos and sweet peas. I am ready for some continuous warm summer days. Happy, happy birthday!

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    1. Hello Mary, For some reason your comment didn't come through my email so I am replying to your sweet comment, here. I can well imagine just how ready you are for day after day of warm summer temperatures. It is a floral explosion down here......soon it will be your turn. Thank you for your lovely birthday greetings, Mary. Kim Xx

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  3. Are your jeans adorned with flowers too? It looks like it in the picture with the dog. How lovely.

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    1. Haha.......yes even my jeans are adorned with flowers. My favourite pair of jeans that I wear around the house had a few holes here and there so I stitched a flower over them......as you do. =) Now I have a brand new pair of jeans. Thank you for your sweet visit. Kim Xx

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  4. You truly are inspired by your environment---your blog helps me through the long, horrid, gray days of Chicagoland whilst you are splendiferous in Summer! Joy---to behold a flower! Hugs, Sandi

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    1. I am inspired by all the beauty that hugs me each day, Sandi and yes JOY is to behold a flower. I can just imagine the freezing temperatures you are experiencing in Chicagoland. I don't envy you one bit, though in a little while it will be my turn to put up with winter. Thank you for your beautiful words. Keep warm! Kim Xx

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  5. Belated Birthday Wishes to you dear Kim. How glorious your garden looks. Do you not have those long drying January days where everything turns crisp & brown? We certainly have them here. Your garden still looks so lush & green. Is that a bundle of Tilda apple butter fabrics my teeny eye spied in amongst your birthday cards? How exciting. Have a lovely flower filled week my friend xxx

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  6. Hi Kim, Thank you so much for the wonderful summer photos, hope you had a good day stitching, can’t wait to see your chaise lounge when finished. Have a great week.
    Best wishes Kay c xx

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    1. I have had a lovely afternoon quilting, Kay. It is always a pleasure to send happy snaps of summer flowers up to you. Summer will perform for a while yet, so be prepared for more. =) I am looking forward to recovering my chaise lounge. Hopefully it will be soon. Thank you for your sweet visit. Hope you have a great week, too. KimXx

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  7. That is really a floral Heaven. Everything is a bit grey here in the UK so I am looking forward to Spring. I already have snowdrops and crocus flowering but it will be a long time until the roses are out so in the meantime I’ll enjoy your.
    I particularly like your blue hexie quilt, btw

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  8. Happy Birthday !!!!
    What can I wishing you ? I see you have all you need and more...Your garden is gorgeous and your creations too...
    Health to enjoy a "max" what you have.
    HUG
    Anna

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  9. Your flowers are a breath of fresh air and it looks like sunny skies! This week has been one of mud season and overcast dreary skies. It might snow this week, at least that covers up the gray soil and sad grass. We used to have a springer spaniel too, a long time ago when our daughter was young. Happy stitching!

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  10. Your garden and your dog -swoon. My son and daughter in law just got a springer spaniel pup - Riley is her name and she's a handful LOL. Lovely projects too. I'm looking forward to seeing how the hexi piece will work as upholstery.

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  11. Oh we are going to be warm today but no beautiful flowers and winter will be back by Wednesday so it's nice to see your beautiful garden. Your dog looks like she enjoys it too!

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  12. Oh I love hydrangeas! I love poppies too; I love every flower!! Your photos are stunning. How I'm longing for summer here, but every season has it's glories. Best, Jane x

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  13. After all those lovely pictures, I'm longing for spring here in Norway.

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  14. I love love love your garden of flowers... your dog is sweet too Kim... I hope your birthday was a wonderful celebration of adding your sweet spirit to this earth!!!! Kathi

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  15. Happy belated Birthday! I always love your beautiful flowery pictures. You added a pup picture this time too which is such a bonus. Enjoy February, your last month of summer. I like February because it is my birthday month, but it is cold and dreary here in New York.

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  16. Colorful flowers everywhere! A pretty sight for my Michigan winter weary eyes. I can almost smell your bountiful garden. Continue to enjoy your garden stitching!

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  17. Too many beautiful things to comment on all of them. I particularly like the white chair with the (cross stitched?) flowers on it and your blue hexagon quilt in the hydrangeas. We are having unusually warm weather this week, and I expect my first daffodil very soon.

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  18. Happy birthday Kim! Your flowery post has just brightened my day! Enjoy the last summer days in this little heaven of yours!

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  19. Kim, your world of flowers is such a wonderful thing! Happiest of birthdays to you, January child! My husband's birthday was also in late January, and it is such a contrast here in the northern hemisphere. I've seen meme after meme describing the month as the longest year ever, hehe. Reading your blog is like having a garden surround year round.....as yours wanes, ours awaken. It is a beautiful cycle. Enjoy your February!

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    1. I totally concur Rita, that my world of flowers is a wonderful thing. It is a blessed gal that I am to think each day I get to walk among all the pretty flowers and drink in their beauty. How wonderful you have just celebrated your husband's birthday. I know so many people who have January birthdays. Alas, my garden will soon wane and yours up there will awaken. It is the rhythm of life, isn't it. But, for today I will just enjoy the cosmos, hydrangeas........and whatever other bloom pops up their pretty heads. Thank you for your sweet wishes, lovely Rita. I hope you are enjoying a gorgeous Sunday way up there in that wonderful loft of yours. Kim Xx

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  20. Happy Birthday!! Your gardens are beautiful. We are on the opposite side of the planet in stuck smack in the middle of winter...cold, dark, gray and bland. Your post was such a welcome sight this morning. Thanks for sharing your color!!

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  21. Although here in Canada it is -10C and snowy white is covering the ground, I love it. But your photos make me long for the bright carefree days of summer and all those flowers. You can almost hear the birds and bees.Enjoy!!

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  22. Such beauty and happiness!!!Happy Birthday,my cheerful and especial friend!Magnificent pictures and adorable treasures.Xo

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    1. Thank you, lovely Maristella for your beautiful wishes and sweet words. Kim Xx

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  23. I'm sitting here breathing in the imagined heady perfume of your delightful blooms. We've been visiting in Texas this week and while warmer than NY, it has been cloudy and rainy all week, so your sunshine is a welcome sight. Your blue hexie piece fits right in the garden. It will be a lovely cover for the chaise.
    Pat

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  24. Happy Birthday! Your garden is beautiful, as always, and an inspiration to me to get started outside! I hope your Summer goes on a while yet for you. Lovely, too, to see Maisie photo bombing :) xxx

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  25. Sorry I'm late... Happy birthday!! Enjoy your beautiful flowers!

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  26. Your post made me feel the warmth of summer......not too far away for us in the UK, hope you had a lovely birthday too!

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  27. Your gardens are always so lovely, I love looking at them and your beautiful pictures. Happy Belated Birthday!

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  28. Happy Belated Birthday from me too, Kim. It's always a delight to read your Happy and colourful blog, full of the delights which make your heart sing, and ours too, sharing a litgle taste of your world.

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  29. 🎶 Happy Birthday 🎵 wishes are sent across the miles to you, dear Kim!! What a perfect month for you to enjoy with all those glorious flowers both outside and on your lap as you stitch away! I hope that you had a fabulous birthday 🎂 🎉 💐 enjoying all the things that you love ❤️.

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  30. Your flowers are breath taking. You definitely have a green thumb. The Gladioli are gorgeous as all of your flowers are. HAPPY BIRTHDAY wishing you happiness and blessings.
    Marion

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    1. Thank you so much, lovely Marion. It is my husband who has the green thumb and garden design expertise.....I just help out with a little weeding...oh and a lot of flower cutting to prune. =) Aren't the Gladdies gorgeous. They are way up there on the list of my favourite flowers. They come in so many exquisite colours. Thank you for your sweet visit. Hope you enjoy a fabulous week. Kim Xx

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  31. Oh wow, heaven on earth. Your flowers are amazing. Love that sweet pup too & of course the quilts.

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  32. Those flowers are beautiful. You have such a lovely garden. The quilts are always a treat to see. Wishing you a HAPPY BIRTHDAY. May your days be filled with blessings throughout the year.
    Marilyn

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    1. The flowers are beautiful, aren't they Marilyn. All is needed is a little of God's sunshine, water, rich red earth and a little tender loving care...then the flowers do what flowers always do....look beautiful. =) Thank you for your beautiful birthday wishes and sweet words, lovely Marilyn. Hope you are enjoying a fabulous day way up there in NY. Kim Xx

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  33. Hello sweet Kim! I want to jump into these glorious pictures! Wow! Everything is so so lovely. You are a beauty-maker!

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  34. Dear Kim, congratulations on your birthday, that many more happy days may follow!
    The blue hexies are incredibly beautiful and fit well with the hydrangeas. With us (earlier than normal), in addition to the snowdrops and crocuses, the daffodils are also in bloom. That's because it's warmer than usual in January, nothing ice and frost. Too bad because there are already flying mosquitoes. I hope that February will also be a beautiful month for you!
    Enjoy your quilting and your beautiful garden with flowers.

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    1. Thank you, lovely Loes for your sweet birthday wishes. That is a wee bit exciting for you to see snowdrops, crocuses and the daffodils beginning to bloom. It looks as if Spring has sprung where you are. February is always the hottest month of our Summer, so I am one happy gal. Kim Xx

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  35. I'd really struggle with concentrating on my quilting/handwork, with all that natural beauty in your surroundings, distracting me!! :)

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  36. I can see why you love January much the same way I love July. Love your garden.
    xx, Carol

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  37. A belated happy birthday to you, Kim. I have a January birthday too. I was born in the Southern Hemisphere, so grew up celebrating in the summer; it's not nearly so much fun having a January birthday in England, I can tell you! Your garden is beyond beautiful - if it were mine I think I would never leave it.

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  38. Your gardens are like heaven on earth...so beautiful and bursting with color. I can just smell the blooms in my mind. Thank you for sharing your summer beauty with us here in the north.

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  39. ♫♪♪HAPPY BIRTHDAY♫♪♬, dear Kim. You are way too bubbly about having another birthday. I've always been reminded that it's better to have a birthday than the opposite!! :) May you have scores of those wonderful days. I am oh so envious of all those blooms - you and your husband have planted the most glorious of gardens - what a joy to stitch away while enjoying all that beauty.

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  40. Thanks for your wonderful reprieve from our winter! It is so beautiful there!

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    1. You are most welcome. Hope I beamed a li'l flowery cheer to your wintry part of the world. Kim Xx

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  41. Oh, Kim, I can't wait for Summer to be over. It's been just a tad too hot up here!!! Your garden is BEAUTIFUL - all those flowers. We're down to watering early morning and evenings only with a watering can - working out which plants to keep alive. It's shown me which parts of the garden I need to replicate once it cools down somewhat. Thanks for sharing your colourful garden. I love to look at your pictures.

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  42. A very Happy Belated Birthday to you!!! Such a beautiful time of year to have a birthday when it is nice and warm and you can enjoy the beauty of your garden. I have so enjoyed seeing all your lovely pictures of the blooming gorgeousness you have! My favorite is the flower with dew or rain drops and the bug :) Wishing you a month full of enjoying that lovely garden of yours!!

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  43. How could I have almost missed this post ~ the hydrangeas post when your gardens are at their absolute loveliest time of the year! I am in total awe of all the magnificent colors that are busting forth from every nook and cranny, inside and out. This truly must be one of the most beautiful places in the world!

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    1. You are very sweet, Mary, thank you. They Hydrangeas this year, have surpassed all expectations....they are amazing. The hue blue can be seen everywhere. Kim Xx

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  44. Summer in January. Sounds so wonderful.
    Makes me smile just to think of such a wondrous thing.
    Your gardens are so lovely! Always a delight to stop by and enjoy
    the flowers of summer with you. Happy, Happy Birthday, Kim!!!
    Many thanks...

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    1. Summer in January is wonderful, Dixie. =) 'Tis always a lovely warm, summery start to a new year. Thank you for your sweet visit. Kim Xx

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  45. I hope the garden looks exactly like that when I come to tea. Gorgeous. And that bag! You have a real gift with bags, Kim. And with quilts. And many other things :-)
    Amalia
    xo

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  46. Kim - the colors of your garden just jump off the page! I can completely understand your mild dismay that summer is going to start fading into fall for you … coincidentally, my next post is called "Spring Fever"! Enjoy your weekend ahead - somehow I guess that a large portion of it will be spent in your garden!

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  47. Happy birthday, dear Kim!! You are a lucky lady to be able to celebrate with such lovely blooms in your gardens! My birthday is in February and around here, that’s usually a cold, snowy month. Your post really brighten my day as we had more snow in my world and can only dream of warm temperatures and colorful flowers! Again, thank you for sharing your beautiful world! Zenda

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  48. Happy Birthday - although by now it's Happy Belated Birthday. I do believe all those flowers are singing Happy Birthday to you also. It's hard for me to imagine January as a summer month. Although I should be able to since where I live we have flowers and there is no snow. Beautiful photos!

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  49. Oh my! January looks absolutely gorgeous in your corner of the world. All your photos are so very beautiful. Summers in a desert country are just way, way too hot and therefore not my favorite season. Now it is winter with mostly mild temperatures which makes it the time for growing plants and veges. Thank you for stopping by my corner of the world. Take care and enjoy February (my birth month) and the rest of your summer. Peace and blessings, Tammy

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  50. The Hydrangeas are just gorgeous! If only I could grow blue ones here. Your garden is beautiful and an inspiration for what is to come here. If we have to be in winter here, then today was a beautiful gift. Mounds of fluffy white snow to weigh the tree branches down and cover everything white. It so pretty. I still would rather be there with you!

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  51. Now tell me - how did I miss knowing it was your birthday?? Very happy (albeit now very belated!) birth day wishes Kim. Your flowers are spectacular and especially appreciated today as I look out my window upon a winter scene....sunny but bitterly cold today. I so much enjoyed scrolling down through your garden tour but then....then.....my eyes fell upon a beautiful blue hexxie quilt. Oh...words fail me....

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  52. Beautiful photos and a wonderful garden you have full of colour and scent. Love your fabric stash too. I think this is perfect I have seen your beautiful blog I am really impressed by your work this is very amazing and thank you for sharing.

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